Press Releases
Issue date: 26.10.07
MBT PLANT GIVEN GO AHEAD AFTER CLEARING FINAL PLANNING HURDLE
Sustainable Resource Management (SRM) has today (26 October 2007) welcomed the decision of Norfolk County Council’s Planning (Regulatory) Committee to approve its plans to build a new Mechanical Biological Treatment Plant in Costessey.
The decision means that SRM is now a significant step closer to building the highly advanced Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) facility adjacent to NEWS’ waste recycling centre at Costessey, west of Norwich. The facility, which will be one of the most advanced and environmentally friendly in Europe, is designed to process up to 150,000 tonnes of waste a year. When completed, it will allow SRM to recycle and recover a large proportion of Norfolk’s waste and start the complete shift away from ‘direct-to-landfill’ waste disposal in the county.
SRM is a subsidiary company of Norfolk Environmental Waste Services Ltd (NEWS). David Beadle, Managing Director of NEWS, said: “We are absolutely delighted to now be in a position to begin building the MBT facility at Costessey. The planning committee’s decision represents a major breakthrough for the people of Norfolk, as it signals a major shift away from landfill.”
“Throughout the planning process we have been conscious that the new MBT plant will be a landmark facility for Norfolk, and have worked hard to create a building that best represents the exciting opportunity that MBT represents.”
John Dixon, Partner of project architects Ingleton Wood said “ We are really pleased that the scheme passed this next hurdle. Throughout the design process the client has supported the approach of making an industrial building into something far more exciting by the use of good design. We are confident that the end building and in particular the cladding to the towers will be something unique and exciting for the Norfolk landscape”.
Construction on the MBT facility should begin in Spring 2008, and is scheduled to be completed within three years.
SRM has worked closely with the local community throughout the planning process to ensure that everyone’s views were taken into account. During the public consultation period, members of the pubic were invited to express their views on the project at a road show that toured communities close to the planned development at Costessey. SRM also produced a newsletter that was distributed around the area that gave the public information about the new facility, and invited residents to fill in a questionnaire giving their views. SRM was delighted to find that a majority of its neighbours supported the MBT plant.
MBT uses the latest mechanical technology to maximise the recycling and reuse of materials and the production of ‘green’ electricity by composting. The process complements existing recycling activities, such as dry recyclable waste collections from households and composting of green waste. It is a highly innovative and effective approach. With MBT and recycling combined, nearly 72% of all household waste generated in Norfolk could be recovered or recycled.